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Chances are if you’re reading this you’ve probably seen The Dark Knight sometime this summer.  Or you at least heard of it.  If you haven’t, I congratulate you, it would have been nice to live in a cave during that media blitz.  Now, you may or may not know that the DVD and Blu-ray release of the movie is coming up on December 9th.  Well, if you haven’t, JVC wants to remind you.

JVC has announced a partnership with Warner Brothers to promote The Dark Knight, as if it needed help.  The company is holding a sweepstakes on its Dark Knight micro-site, offering for a chance to win a JVC home theater package, and Dark Knight DVDs.  Full details after the break.

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Its been a while since I’ve been to Times Square, I can’t even draw an image of it in my mind.  It just tends to blend in with the rest of New York City for me.  Almost commonplace in a way.  Now at least there’s something brand new to catch my attention.  JVC has announced that it will be bringing the first ever HDTV to the New York City landmark.

The screen will display at 720p and be powered by LEDs (1,266,400 of them to be exact).  There is no mention of a contrast ratio, but with a size of 19’ by 34’, I doubt many people will be looking for that sort of thing.  The screen will hang just one story above Times Square at Broadway and 43rd.  There will also be a new 71’ LED ticker below the screen, and the JVC globe beneath it will be refurbished for the HD screen’s activation on December 2nd.

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In much the same way Blu-ray hopes to eventually ‘kill’ the inferior DVD, DVD has finally buried VHS.  “Old news!“ I hear you cry, and yes, I appreciate that the VHS has been facing this impending doom for a while, but the day has finally come where we can officially say that it is a thing of the past.

Up until now JVC, the developers of VHS, have been the only major company to still make standalone VHS players, with companies like Panasonic blaming the obviously empty market for them stopping production.  The last film to be released on VHS, “A History of Violence,“ was released in 2006, completing 30 years of VHS dominated home visual entertainment, which started with “The Young Teacher.“  Continued after the break.

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Sometimes, we just can’t let go – original eight track records, vintage clothes, hard-to-find comic books, first edition volumes… even with the digital age, some people still prefer to rock on with their analogs.

If you (or your father) are like this, JVC hears you. The company recently announced that it has released two new video recorders capable of handling VHS, DVD, and even HDD recording.

Intuitively, the DR-HX500 has a 500GB hard drive while the DR-HX250 has half that capacity (250GB). That’s where the difference ends. Both devices boast of a built-in analog/digital TV tuner, an HDMI socket, a VHS player, and a DVD burner/player. Both are capable of handling DTS and Dolby Digital formats.

Parents can now relive their old classics while their children indulge in the latest Hollywood releases. Recorded clips from TV, such as American Idol episodes, can either be stored on the hard drive or burned on DVD’s.

The HX500 can go for as much as $906 while the HX250 will post a $715 tag.

Via [Pocket-lint] 

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JVC is entering the sub-camcorder market with its new Everio S Series camcorder - the GZ-MS100. Aside from its slim and compact design and advanced video capturing features, this new camcorder boasts of a one-touch upload to YouTube. That’s right folks, JVC is taking advantage of the popularity of YouTube and came up with its own nifty YouTube functionality.

Users just have to install the Cyberlink software and they can get started uploading videos right after their video capturing sessions. The camcorder’s upload button makes this task easy to do. The camcorder also automatically sets the time limit when recording video for YouTube purposes. Users don’t have to manually set the time to 10 minutes, which is what YouTube’s limit is. Using a USB cable to connect the camcorder and a PC automatically launches the application to upload videos to YouTube.

Other features of this camcorder include; Konica Minolta 35x optical lens and 800x digital, records directly to SD/SDHC memory card, 1/6-inch 680K pixel CCD, Gigabrid engine, Laser touch operation, auto LCD backlight control and a 2.7-inch 16:9 widescreen clear LCD. This camcorder retails at $349.99 and will hit the streets sometime in June.

Product [JVC] Via [OhGizmo!]

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Sections: Imaging, Camcorders, Web, Websites, Online Music/Video

JVC is having a hard time keeping up with what the consumer wants these days and so they have been posting some pretty big losses. Year after year, JVC losses increase by a lot, they have risen from $75 million to a whopping $455 million. The main culprit for the loss is their failing HDTV department. In an effort to gain

some profit, the are being forced to make some changes.

First, they will move their chief production areas to less expensive places. This means that the factory in Scotland and Japan will be moved to Poland and Thailand. By doing this, they hope to save some money with reduced operating expenses. Also, they plan to focus most of their efforts on the profitable big screen TV area, like 42-inches and up. These changes will be limited to the Japanese market for the time being, no word on what they plan to do in the American market and how to gain more profits in America.

JVC blames the losses partly on getting rid of unprofitable business firms, and they say that their TV department needs to go back to the drawing board because people aren’t interested in rear-projection and tube TV’s, but rather LCD’s and flat panel screens.

Via [Electronista]

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JVC is releasing a new high-end model to its bi-metal in-ear canal headphones – JVC HA-SX500. If you are wondering what a bi-metal headphone is? Just think of old times and try to recall those folding headphones that we used to wear to listen to our precious Sony Walkmans. Well, that’s exactly how the JVC HA-SX500 looks.

But don’t even think that this new JVC headphones is a clone of those old Sony ones. JCV is actually touting this product as a high-end addition to their bi-metal headphone lineup. By high-end it simply means that JVC has designed this headphone to produce high quality sound through a Bi-METAL structure. The HA-SX500 also reduces friction noise while increasing comfort during prolong used. Less friction noise means, better audibility.

Now for some even more good stuff, the HA-SX500 are lightweight and should fit comfortably and securely while at the same time delivering superior isolation from both external sounds and sound leakage. The headphone was designed ergonomically with silicon rubber earpiece supported by cushioned metallic foldable headband. What this simply means is you’d probably enjoy using the headphone without straining your ears that much.

And finally, as a way of responding to the sign of the times, JVC is throwing in a plug that connects the HA-SX500 with the iPhone. If you don’t mind pairing your iPhone with this old looking headphone, then be prepared to spare around $79.95 sometime this month when JVC officially released the HA-SX500.

Via [Crave] Read [JVC]

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Recently at CES, JVC announced their new Marshmallow headphones that are set to come in seven different colors, they claim to coordinate with the latest iPod’s. Basically, the new Marshmallow in-ear canal headphones were designed to be extra comfortable and provide great sound quality.

The HA-FX34 Marshmallow comes with super-soft earpieces to provide a snug and comfortable fit inside your ear. They claim that the colors of the headphones perfectly complement with Apple’s 3rd gen iPod Nano and iPod Shuffle. Also, these headphones are fully compatible with the iPhone. If you have either of these Apple devices, you might want to consider picking up one these JVC headphones to match your iPod.

Additionally, there is a 3.28 foot cord, that is designed to reduce noise, from the noise generated when it brushes against clothing.

The HA-F130 Gummy in-ear headphones, are now available in three new and different colors, they are Raspberry Red, Mint Blue and Melon Green, so the total of the gummy colors are now eight. These have been designed to provide maximum comfort in your ears, and likewise with the Marshmallow lineup, it comes with a gold-plated iPhone and iPod compatibility.

The Marshmallow headphones will be available in February ‘08 for 20 dollars, and the Gummy HA-F130 are now available costing only 10 bucks.

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Gadgetell is at the Palace (aka Caesar’s) for this important press conference. Hit Crtl R or F5 to refresh to keep up to the minute.

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JVC recently announced a new type of Bluetooth stereo headset which is designed to fit comfortably in your ear, and provide hands-free calling as well as good quality music listening. Dubbed the HA-W700BT, it comes with amazing stereo sound and sound isolation, so you only hear your music and not outside noise. It will also last up to 11 hours on a single charge.

This headset supports Bluetooth version 2.0, and is compatible with profiles such as A2DP, AVRCP, HFP and HSP. It features an 11mm neodymium driver units which feature a frequency range of 10Hz to 23kHz. Now, this headset consists of 2 parts, the in ear headphones part, as well as the small receiver. The receiver features a small clip, thus allowing you to clip it onto a shirt. The receiver can also be connected to your home audio system, using a mini jack, and then it will act like a wireless stereo receiver.

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